Buccodental care device

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a buccodental care device. It relates to a device, comprising in combination a flushing cleaning device, comprising a liquid supply, a flushing device and a cannula, sucking discharge device, comprising a cannula, a sucking device and a liquid vessel and a control device for controlling the simultaneious operation of the flushing and sucking devices. The flushing cleaning device is a hydropulsion device. Each cannula has a handle and a setting valve which can be actuated by the hand holding the handle. Application to old, invalid or disabled people.

The present invention relates to buccodental care, and moreparticularly, a buccodental care device specially designed for bedriddenor invalid people but also appropriate for any other people.

Administering buccodental care in institutions such as hospitals,private hospitals, old people's homes, geriatrics and disabled peoplehomes, involves special problems. Indeed, traditional brushing is oftenuneasy, even impossible. For example, it is not convenient for bedriddenpeople.

It is already known to use hydropulsion devices flushing through acannula liquid jets allowing for some tooth cleaning. The liquid beingflushed by such devices should be able to be discharged. Such adischarge is no problem when the individual is standing and can forexample spit into a washbasin. However, such a solution is not possiblefor bedridden people. In practice, such hydropulsion devices are notused for bedridden people to be cared of.

It is also known, in the dental care art, to use sucking devicescomprising a cannula, most often being curved, for providing acontinuous discharge of saliva and fluids which could be spread out bydrills or other instruments.

Such solutions, being implemented in a dentist's office, obviously arenot convenient for the daily buccodental care in bedridden patients, whoare often unable to perform by themselves the basic operations requiredfor such care.

The object of the present invention is to provide a solution forovercoming such above-mentioned buccodental care problems. Moreprecisely, the invention relates to a device wherein cleaning teeth,mucous membranes and mouth generally can be done by one singleindividual, without any help from the bedridden individual. Moreprecisely, the device according to the invention combines on the onehand a cleaning, function through flushing a cleaning liquid and on theother hand a discharge function for the liquid being flushed.

Preferably, the discharge function starts before the flushing functionand continues after the completion of the flushing function, such sothat the individual's mouth remains clear.

More precisely, the invention relates to a buccodental care devicecomprising, in combination, a flushing cleaning device, comprising aliquid supply, a flushing device and a flushing cannula, a suckingdischarge device, comprising a sucking cannula, a sucking device and aliquid vessel, and a control device so as to control at least thesimultaneous operation of the flushing device and the sucking device.

Preferably, the flushing device has a pulsating operation. Thus, it isadvantageous when the flushing cleaning device is a hydropulsion device.

Preferably, each cannula has a handle and a setting valve arranged so asto be actuated by the hand holding the handle. Preferably, the cannulashave a single-use nozzle or are exchangeable. The sucking cannula couldbe bent so as to allow to be labially held.

In an advantageous embodiment, the flushing device and the suckingdevice are driven by the same driving force source. It should then beadvantageously an electric motor.

In another embodiment, the driving force source of the sucking device isa compressed air venturi creating a depression provided for the suckingdevice.

In an embodiment, the control device comprises a programmed device. Itis then advantageous when it control, in first time periods, thesimultaneous operation of the flushing and sucking devices and, insecond time periods, the only operation of the sucking device.

In an embodiment, the device is portable and is designed to be connectedwith an electric current source. The electric current source could befor example a supply network, an accumulator battery, a battery or acombination thereof.

In another embodiment, the device is moveable on a carriage comprisingan independent energy source, and in another embodiment, the device isstationary and is designed for being mounted near a bed.

Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will be betterunderstood from reading the following specification of embodiments madereferring to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 shows an exemplary buccodental care device according to a firstembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows an alternative device only having one motor; and

FIG. 3 shows another embodiment of a device which can be advantageouslyused in the case of a pneumatic supply, being sometimes present in someinstitutions.

FIG. 1 shows a device according to a first embodiment of the invention.Such a device comprises a housing 10 containing the functionalcomponents for the device. Such functional components essentiallycomprise a flushing cleaning device generally designated by 12 and asucking discharge device with the general numeral 14.

More precisely, the flushing cleaning device 12 comprises a pump 16drawing from a supply 18 a liquid, such as water or a solutioncontaining a mouth-wash product. The pump outlet is connected with aflushing cannula 20 comprising a handle 22 and a nozzle 24 adapted to beput into the mouth. The nozzle 24 could be of a single use or preferablyexchangeable type. A button 26 controls a valve allowing for theflushing performed by means of the cannula to be set.

The sucking cleaning device 14 comprises a sucking pump 28 suckingthrough the cannula 30 provided with a handle 32 with a nozzle 34. Thenozzle 34 is preferably bent so that it could optionally remain hangedup on a lip. The cannula 30 may optionally comprise a button 36 forsetting a valve allowing for the sucking force to be set. The materialsbeing extracted by the cannula 30 are discharged by the pump 28 into thevessel 38.

The device additionally comprises a control device, not shown, alsoarranged in the housing 10. It could comprise appropriate switches. Thecontrol device is not shown, as it could have numerous known forms,ranging from simple switches separately controlling the pumps 16 and 28to programmable microprocessor systems for performing very elaboratecoordinated control cycles of the operations of the cleaning anddischarge devices.

In a particularly advantageous embodiment of the invention, a simplecommand to the control circuit provides the sucking function by thecannula 30 before the flushing function by the cannula 20 starts. Insuch a way, the discharge of the materials from the mouth immediatelyoccurs and prevents liquid from stagnating deep in the throat creatingsome discomfort to the patient. Similarly, the sucking device 14 goes onrunning for some time, preferably a few seconds, after the flushingcleaning device 12 has stopped, so that all the liquids which havepossibly spread out in the mouth are discharged and the patient feelscomfortable.

FIG. 2 shows an alternative wherein both pumps 16 and 28, each driven bya motor in the embodiment in FIG. 1, are coupled with one single motor44. In such an embodiment, it could be advantageous either toincorporate a solenoid valve into the flushing cannula circuit, so as tobe able to programme various simultaneous or not cleaning and dischargecycles, or to incorporate clutches between the motor and each of thepumps or one of the pumps 40, 42 at least. Such an embodiment provides areduced cost for the device.

The device in FIG. 3 is another alternative which is advantageously usedin the case of stationary facilities, for example, at the top of ahospital bed. It is frequent that compressed air should be availablenear a hospital bed. In such a case, the device comprises for thecleaning device a pump 46 being driven by a pneumatic motor 48 connectedwith a compressed air inlet 50 located at the mounting location of thedevice. The compressed air going out of the motor 48 through a line 52is supplied to a venturi device 54 the side sucking part of which isconnected with a sucking cannula such that the sucked liquids aredischarged into the vessel 38.

The devices in FIGS. 1 and 2 are advantageously of the portable type.When the motors driving the pumps 16, 28 and the motor 44 are of anelectric type, they could be supplied through a connection with themains, by an accumulator battery, for example of the nickel-cadmiumtype, by a battery or a combination thereof.

In an alternative useful in institutions such as hospitals, privatehospitals, old people's homes, etc., the device could be mounted on acarriage with an accumulator battery. It could then be moved from onebed to another by the caregiver in order to provide the buccodental careof several individuals successively.

One of the main features of the device according to the invention isthat it does not require any discharge, as the liquid being used forcleaning purpose is recovered by the sucking device. It is therefore notrequired to have a wash-basin available to use the device. The devicecould be easily moved in such institutions and makes it possible forbuccodental care of patients, old people, invalid or disabled people tobe performed by one single individual, in a simple and easy way.

Although it has been essentially referred to the case of bedriddenpeople, the invention is also applicable to other patients, for examplehaving their jawbones immobilized and which do not provide an easyaccess to the mouth after a fracture, setting or osteosynthesis.

Obviously, various modifications could be provided by the man of the artto the devices being just disclosed only by way of non limiting exampleswithout departing from the scope of the invention.

1. A buccodental care device, of the kind which comprises incombination: a flushing cleaning device, comprising a liquid supply anda flushing device, a sucking discharge device, comprising a suckingdevice and a liquid vessel, and a control device designed forcontrolling the operation of the flushing device and the sucking device,wherein the flushing cleaning device is a hydropulsion device, theflushing device includes a flushing cannula, and the control device isdesigned for controlling at least the simultaneous operation of theflushing device and the sucking device.
 2. A device according to claim1, wherein the sucking discharge device comprises a sucking cannula. 3.A device according to claim 2, wherein at least one of the flushingcannula and the sucking cannula has a handle and a setting valvearranged so as to be actuated by the hand holding the handle.
 4. Adevice according to claim 1, wherein the flushing device and the suckingdevice are driven by the same driving source.
 5. A device according toclaim 4, wherein the driving source is an electric motor.
 6. A deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the control device comprises a programmeddevice.
 7. A device according to claim 6, wherein the programmed devicecontrols, in first time periods, the simultaneous operation of theflushing and sucking devices and, in second time periods, the onlyoperation of the sucking device.
 8. A device according to claim 1,wherein the cannulas have a single use nozzle.
 9. A device according toclaim 1, wherein the device is portable and is designed for beingconnected with an electric current source selected amongst a mains, anaccumulator battery, a battery and a combination thereof.
 10. A deviceaccording to claim 1, wherein the device is moveable on a carriagecomprising an independent energy source.
 11. A device according to claim2, wherein the flushing device and the sucking device are driven by thesame driving source.
 12. A device according to claim 2, wherein thecontrol device comprises a programmed device.
 13. A device according toclaim 4, wherein the control device comprises a programmed device.
 14. Adevice according to claim 2, wherein the cannulas have a single usenozzle.
 15. A device according to claim 4, wherein the cannulas have asingle use nozzle.
 16. A device according to claim 6, wherein thecannulas have a single use nozzle.
 17. A device according to claim 2,wherein the device is portable and is designed for being connected withan electric current source selected amongst a mains, an accumulatorbattery, a battery and a combination thereof.
 18. A device according toclaim 6, wherein the device is portable and is designed for beingconnected with an electric current source selected amongst a mains, anaccumulator battery, a battery and a combination thereof.
 19. A deviceaccording to claim 2, wherein the device is moveable on a carriagecomprising an independent energy source.
 20. A device according to claim6, wherein the device is moveable on a carriage comprising anindependent energy source.